Review Date
August 31, 2009

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 5 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 4 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Ridden Once

Reviewed by: magster ,  Weekend Warrior

Summary:
FUN FUN FUN, but leave enough time for a "do over" at the top of the
Queen's Careen. If you are a lower intermediate rider, I'd recommend the lower section of Horse Creek Spur, Castle Moat, and Kings Frolic. The ascent up to the top is difficult with loose leaves, rocks & tree roots, hence the title Prince of Pain. Cross the first creek at Castle Moat with care since the rocks are not lined up.

We rode on a Friday in July & saw only 2 other riders & 2 hikers near
the lower mines. We did hear one bear, deer do not make that much noise.

It took us(me) 4.5 hours & I am not a great rider & mostly hiked
up the big ascent as it was very loose.

It is a beautiful trail, make sure to stop by the Forest Service &
get a map. The total elevation change is more than what the website states.

Recommended Route:
Do the route recommended by the forest service.

Review Date
July 18, 2009

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 3 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 3 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Every few months

Reviewed by: Tallflint ,  Cross Country Rider

Summary:
great trail,
BUT do stay on known routes,
wandering into unknown woods and trails can be deadly,
many hostile and violent pot growers are everywhere in the lost coast area, including large criminal operations.
humans have been murdered over pot in whitethorn, and the list of the missing is a long one, be careful......

Recommended Route:
stay on known trail

Other recommended trails in the same area:
beware of pot growers on both public and private land,
maybe someday pot will be legal and this threat will end........

Review Date
June 6, 2009

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 4 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 3 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Once a year

Reviewed by: KalKebec ,  Cross Country Rider

Summary:
If you take your shoes off and velcro them around your handlebars, you can wade across the creeks and only suffer numb feet for a few minutes instead of the whole ride with wet shoes.

If you miss the potty in Redway, use the vault toilets at Tolkan campground; it's just around the corner from the trail head (and you pass just below it on the trail anyway).

If you're coming from far away to ride this, either camp at Tolkan (or if you need plusher accommodations, stay in Shelter Cove). Consider climbing up to King's Peak if you're making a weekend of it.

The crumbly soil effect in early autumn is amplified in some sections during a good acorn year... trail marbles!

Stop by the BLM office in Whitethorn to tell them how much you loved it and thank them for planning to build even more trail soon. GOOD land managers!

Recommended Route:
Clockwise for most of us; widdershins for superhumans; both for masochists and endurance freaks.

Other recommended trails in the same area:
The Community Park in Garberville has the only LEGAL singletrack for bikes in the south part of the county; it's a family-friendly loop through farm, field and forest.

Review Date
May 30, 2009

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 4 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 3 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Ridden Once

Reviewed by: livecrabshear@gmail.com ,  Cross Country Rider

Summary:
Excellent trail for fit bike riders! In clockwise route, you get a few rollers as a warm-up before the big climb. The main ascent is long and sustained with steep, sharp turns that are nice leg burners. The trail is pretty buff-- no big logs or boulders in the way (except at the trailheads to keep motorbikes out). Trail is relatively dry and in spots crumbly, but no thorns to worry about. In late May, the cool fog rolls in, so wear leg and arm warmers with a wind-stopper vest and pack a jacket. Bring extra socks in case your feet get wet crossing the two creeks. Stopped for a banana at the mountaintop and a few skeeters bit my ankles. Beginner riders can do this trail but prepare to power those tight switchbacks when there's a little rock crumble under your tires. Watch out for poison oak at the trailhead. I didn't see any on the trail. This trail rates high on my list for NorCal singletrack.

Recommended Route:
Took two hours to complete the 14-mile loop clockwise at a moderate pace. Clockwise, you get a steep climb that would be a sketchy descent in the opposite direction with a steep drop-off in the "you-don't-want-to-fall" zones. Ride clockwise to get a kick-ass, smooth, rolling descent with awesome burms and then turn around and do the loop counterclockwise when you want a longer workout.
FYI: No bathroom at the trailhead. If you need a john, hit the gas station in Redway (20 miles before trailhead).

Other recommended trails in the same area:
The Tolkan campground is on this same bike trail and would be a good place to park a car in the shade. The main trailhead doesn't provide shade. Then again, the fog does.

Review Date
March 12, 2009

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Aerobic Difficulty
 3 of 5

Technical Difficulty
 3 of 5

Ridden Trail:
Ridden Once

Reviewed by: ryanlr ,  Cross Country Rider

Summary:
Victor did an excellent job of describing the trail in the above review.

The only part I did not like about the trail is the lack of bridges at the two steam crossings. There are signs posted asking riders to use the rocks and tread carefully due to spawning in the area. However, when I rode the trail on 3/10, the water levels were high enough to cover all of the rocks. Wet shoes combined with the air temp in the high 40's made for numb feet for the entire ride. The rangers at King's Range office did indicate that bridges are in the long term plan along with an additional 12-14 miles of trail from Shelter Cove Rd. to the pond just before the last stream crossing.

Recommended Route:
Although I only had time to do one loop (clockwise), I would also recommend doing both starting with the clockwise route. Like Victor wrote, the decent can be very loose and sketchy.